Abortive infection by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) of guinea pig (GP) cells in cultures induces an increase in the rate of synthesis of cellular components similar to that demonstrated for other viruses that are known to cause cellular transformation. An understanding of the mechanism by which CMV stimulates the synthesis of cellular components and leads to abortive infection may give information on virus latency, persistence and oncogenic potential. The project is to study the mechanism of HCMV abortive infection in GP cells. Current aims are to identify the mechanism that blocks the infective process of HCMV in abortive infection, and to determine the mechanism that causes a gradual decrease in the density of the input viral genome in abortive infection.